Officials at municipal corporation Jalandhar (MCJ) said that though they have been carrying out fogging from past two months, more cases of dengue are being identified everyday, with patients lining up both in the civil and private hospitals of the city.
(Representative image )

As the number of dengue cases has been on the rise in the city, the officials blamed the residents for their lackadaisical attitude in taking preventive measures.

Officials at municipal corporation Jalandhar (MCJ) said that though they have been carrying out fogging from past two months, more cases of dengue are being identified everyday, with patients lining up both in the civil and private hospitals of the city.

Notably, the number of dengue cases in the district has already reached 211. Dr Shri Kishan Sharma, assistant medical officer (MCJ) said that the civic body has so far issued challans to more than 200 people in the period two months, on whose residence water was found stagnant or larvae breeding causes were noticed.

“We have already completed the fogging in west and cantonment areas and are currently focusing on central constituency,” said Dr Shri Kishan.

When asked whether MCJ has raised its budget as compared to last year for carrying out the fogging process or taking other preventive measures, the officials didn’t have any details on the same. “We do not set any particular budget for the work, we carry out our work throughout the season,” said an official.

“Our part is only limited to carry out fogging and organising camps for awareness about various causes of dengue,” he added.

Fear of Chikungunya

Meanwhile due reports of deaths due to Chikungunya in some parts of Delhi, there is a fear among the people to an extent that even the ones suffering from common viral fever think they are suffering from Chikungunya.

So far, seven cases of Chikungunya have been recorded in the district.

Dr Surinder Kumar, district incharge IDSP (Integrated Disease Surveillance Project) said, “Doctors have been receiving many patients in the OPD who claim that they are suffering from Chikugunya but by the test conducted with the kit, only seven cases tested positive with no fatalities so far.”

27 dengue cases in Kapurthala

Dengue fever has started extending its tentacles in Kapurthala as over 200 patients have been examined within a month.

The health department has confirmed 27 positive cases till date, with two cases detected on Monday, but no death has been reported so far.

Notably, most of the sufferers are undergoing treatment at Jalandhar civil hospital or private hospitals as the Cryofuge machine used for the blood collection has been non-functional for last one month in the Kapurthala civil hospital. The machine helps to transfer platelets to dengue patients.

Moreover, the city civil hospital does not have single donor platelets (SPD) extraction machine and platelet rich plasma (PRP) method being used to transfer platelets to dengue patients.

A senior doctor on anonymity said that due to lack of facilities at the civil hospital most of the patients opt for private hospitals.

Sources said that though government hospital has all basic facilities such as an isolation ward, mac-alisa test, NS1 antigen test and other medicines to treat dengue patients, but due to non-functional of microfuge machine and lack of SPD extraction machine for serious cases, doctors have to refer the serious dengue patients to other hospitals.

Pvt hospitals not submitting records

Sources in the health department said that the number of dengue cases could be higher as private hospitals were not providing records of patients under their care, even as officials had directed them to submit daily reports.

Sources also claimed that due to lack of infrastructure and no clear line of treatment at government hospitals, people are forced to opt for expensive treatment at private hospitals.

Senior medical officer, Anoop Singh could not be reached for comments despite repeated attempts. Civil surgeon HS Kahlon said that hospital has made proper arrangements and so far, not many cases have been reported this year.

Precautions

* Clean coolers within a week and keep dry for a day

* Do not keep flower pots, broken items, tyres etc on rooftops especially during rainy season to avoid accumulation of water

* Wear full-sleeved clothes

* Spray insecticides in and around the house

* Do not close doors and windows when teams of outdoor fogging visit the area